Parallel parking is a method of parking a vehicle in line with other parked cars. Cars parked in parallel are in one line, parallel to the curb, with the front bumper of each car facing the back bumper of an adjacent one. Since parallel parking is parallel to the curb of a road, roads that facilitate said parking have an extra lane or a large shoulder for parked cars. It is also employed anytime perpendicular parking facilities are not available or hard to come by commonly, that's in large metropolitan areas where there is a high density of vehicles and few (or restricted) accommodations such as parking garages.
Parallel parking is considered by many to be one of the hardest skills for new drivers to learn. Following are the typical steps for performing a parallel parking:                Signal into the space.        Ensure that the desired parking space is about 2 meters longer than the vehicle's length.        Line up the vehicle beside the vehicle in front of the parking space.        Turn the steering wheel one turn towards the curb and put the vehicle into reverse.        Back up the vehicle so that the rear bumper is first to enter the parking space.        Once the vehicle is at a certain angle such as 45° to the parking spot, slow down and turn the steering wheel all the way, to the road side.        Continue backing up until the vehicle is parallel with the curb.        Gradually turn the steering wheel towards the curb to curve the vehicle into a straight position.        Brake once the vehicle occupies the middle of the parking space.        Make sure that the vehicle is not parked too far from the curb.        
Recognizing the problem of performing an accurate parallel parking car, manufacturers are trying to automate the parking process. For example, one car manufacturer recently disclosed an automated parking system. This system relies on a built-in computer, steering sensor and a tiny camera in the car's rear to park itself in a user specified region chosen with the arrows.